Merapi death toll reaches 191
Source: Agencies |
November 11, 2010, Thursday
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INDONESIA'S most volatile volcano spewed clouds of ash high into the sky yesterday, forcing some international airlines to cancel flights again and US President Barack Obama to cut short his visit.
The official death toll, meanwhile, climbed by close to 40 to 191.
Disaster officials said earlier figures had not included people who died of respiratory problems, heart attacks and other illnesses linked to the fiery mountain.
Mount Merapi, located in the heart of Java island, roared back to life two weeks ago, shooting searing clouds of gray soot and debris up to 6 kilometers into the air almost daily, with lava and rock cascading down its fertile slopes.
More than 350,000 people have been evacuated to cramped emergency shelters.
Obama sliced several hours off his whirlwind 24-hour tour to Indonesia over concerns about the volcanic ash, which has been carried by westerly winds toward the capital, Jakarta.
He flew to South Korea for the Group of 20 summit.
Safety concerns also prompted several international carriers to again cancel flights into and out of Jakarta, 450 kilometers from Merapi, said Syaiful Bahri, who oversees operations at the airport.
Among them were Cathay Pacific, Value Air and Qantas.
Merapi has erupted many times in the last century, killing more than 1,400.
Last Friday, it experienced its most explosive blast in more than a century.
At least one yet-to-be evacuated village was incinerated, setting on fire houses, trees and fleeing residents.
Muhammad Anshori, a disaster official, said yesterday the official death toll since the first eruption on October 26 had climbed to 191 - up from 153 earlier in the day.
Another 600 have been hospitalized, some with burns covering 95 percent of their body.
More than 340,000 people living along its slopes and villages near the base have been evacuated, he said. They are now living in more than 80 government camps. Many in the camps complain about poor sanitation, saying the toilets and water are filthy.
Indonesia is a vast archipelago of 235 million people. The country is prone to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions because it sits along the Pacific "Ring of Fire," a horseshoe-shaped string of faults that lines the Pacific Ocean.
The official death toll, meanwhile, climbed by close to 40 to 191.
Disaster officials said earlier figures had not included people who died of respiratory problems, heart attacks and other illnesses linked to the fiery mountain.
Mount Merapi, located in the heart of Java island, roared back to life two weeks ago, shooting searing clouds of gray soot and debris up to 6 kilometers into the air almost daily, with lava and rock cascading down its fertile slopes.
More than 350,000 people have been evacuated to cramped emergency shelters.
Obama sliced several hours off his whirlwind 24-hour tour to Indonesia over concerns about the volcanic ash, which has been carried by westerly winds toward the capital, Jakarta.
He flew to South Korea for the Group of 20 summit.
Safety concerns also prompted several international carriers to again cancel flights into and out of Jakarta, 450 kilometers from Merapi, said Syaiful Bahri, who oversees operations at the airport.
Among them were Cathay Pacific, Value Air and Qantas.
Merapi has erupted many times in the last century, killing more than 1,400.
Last Friday, it experienced its most explosive blast in more than a century.
At least one yet-to-be evacuated village was incinerated, setting on fire houses, trees and fleeing residents.
Muhammad Anshori, a disaster official, said yesterday the official death toll since the first eruption on October 26 had climbed to 191 - up from 153 earlier in the day.
Another 600 have been hospitalized, some with burns covering 95 percent of their body.
More than 340,000 people living along its slopes and villages near the base have been evacuated, he said. They are now living in more than 80 government camps. Many in the camps complain about poor sanitation, saying the toilets and water are filthy.
Indonesia is a vast archipelago of 235 million people. The country is prone to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions because it sits along the Pacific "Ring of Fire," a horseshoe-shaped string of faults that lines the Pacific Ocean.
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